AXIS [Axis] coalition of countries headed by Germany, Italy, and Japan, 1936-45 (see World War II ). The expression "Rome-Berlin axis" originated in Oct., 1936, with an accord reached by Hitler and Mussolini. The Axis was solidified by an Italo-German alliance in May, 1939. This was extended (Sept., 1940) by a military alliance among Germany, Italy, and Japan—the so-called Berlin Pact, to which Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Slovakia, and Croatia adhered later. The related Anti-Comintern Pact (see Comintern ), originally concluded between Germany and Japan in 1936, later had as adherents, besides the Berlin Pact nations, Spain, Denmark, Finland, and the puppet governments of Manchukuo and Nanjing.

Regards//Larry

"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them." -- Attributed to Richard Henry Lee

What I am really interested in is the rational for the use of the Italian/Hungarian/German equivalent to "Axis." Why did the orginator of the expression (Mussolini or Gombos or whoever) call it the "Axis Pact" instead of something else?

When you think about it, the word "Axis" is not similar to the terms used to name other international agreements made at the time. Usually, they are named for the place in which the agreement was made: the Berlin Pact or the Versailles Treaty follow the normal naming convention of the day.

Italy, facing opposition to its war in Abyssinia from the League of Nations, forged an alliance with Germany, which had withdrawn from the League [League of Nations] in 1933. The term was first used by Benito Mussolini, in November 1936, when he spoke of a Rome-Berlin axis in reference to the treaty of friendship signed between Italy and Germany on October 25, 1936. The two countries would form an "axis" around which the other states of Europe could revolve. Later, in May 1939, this relationship transformed into an alliance, dubbed the "Pact of Steel".

The Axis was extended to include Japan as a result of the Anti-Comintern Pact of November 25th 1936 and the Tripartite Treaty of September 27, 1940. The alliance was subsequently joined by Hungary (November 20, 1940), Romania (November 23, 1940), Slovakia's puppet government (November 24, 1940) and Bulgaria (March 1, 1941). The Italian name Roberto briefly acquired a new meaning from "Roma-Berlino-Tokyo" between 1940 and 1945.

Regards//Larry

"To preserve liberty, it is essential that the whole body of the people always possess arms, and be taught alike, especially when young, how to use them." -- Attributed to Richard Henry Lee